How to survive the world's worst diet

WHY DO the nomadic Masai people of Kenya and Tanzania have such a low incidence of heart disease when they live almost exclusively on meat and milk? Puzzled scientists have tried to explain this with theories ranging from "good genes" to an active lifestyle or the benefits of drinking fermented milk. Researchers in Quebec, however, think the answer could also lie in the health-giving properties of certain barks the Masai add to their meals.

The Canadians, from McGill University's Centre for Nutrition and the Environment of Indigenous Peoples (CINE), have discovered cholesterol lowering chemicals called saponins in four bark extracts that are regularly added to foods by the Batemi, a people who live near the Masai. The Batemi share the Masai's penchant for adding bark tonics, medicines and flavourings to their meaty stews and milky drinks, says Tim Johns, associate director of CINE.

Johns, an ethnobotanist and nutritionist, has carried ...

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